Apparent viscosity of chicken muscle homogenates. Influence of pH and muscle type

The effect of pH and type of muscle on apparent viscosity of chicken breast, thigh and combined B/T muscles was investigated. The apparent viscosity of thigh muscle homogenate at pH from 5.8 to 6.6, and combined B/T muscle homogenate at pH from 5.8 to 6.3 was increasing. The apparent viscosity of breast muscle homogenate increased with pH increase, reaching a maximum at pH 6.3 and then decreased. When pH raised from 5.8 to 6.3, breast muscle homogenate apparent viscosity increased 3.5-6.0 times more than apparent viscosity of thigh muscle homogenate. An increase of combined B/T muscle homogenate apparent viscosity under shear rate 0.3333-48.6 (s-1) was approximately an average of increases for its individual muscles. At pH 5.8 and 6.0, apparent viscosity of thigh muscle homogenate was approximately two times higher than that of breast muscle homogenate, and reversibly, at pH 6.3, breast muscle homogenate apparent viscosity was about 20% higher than that of thigh muscle homogenate. The apparent viscosity of combined B/T muscle homogenate at pH 5.8 and 6.0, was greater than apparent viscosity of breast muscle homogenate, and at pH 6.3, was greater than apparent viscosity of thigh muscle homogenate. The present data extend the results reported by other researches that there are remarkable differences not only in functional and rheological properties of myofibrillar proteins (SSP, myosin) but also in those of homogenates from chicken white and red muscles.